The state government's development policy activities are based on the development policy priorities of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The priorities place the state government's development policy work in the context of the 2030 Agenda and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Commitment to development policy depends above all on a lively, strong civil society. In this respect, North Rhine-Westphalia has an extraordinarily diverse landscape. North Rhine-Westphalia maintains diverse international relations and is particularly committed to development policy in countries and regions with which it has special ties. Ghana has been a partner country of North Rhine-Westphalia since 2007, and a partnership with North Macedonia has been in place since 2021. In February 2023, the state government entered into a regional partnership with the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast in Ukraine.
- Further information on the country partnership with Ghana (Link)
- Further information on the country partnership with North Macedonia (Link)
- Further information on the regional partnership with the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast in Ukraine (Link)
- Further information on North Rhine-Westphalia's involvement in the Middle East and South Africa (Link)
The Concrete Peace Service supports young adults from North Rhine-Westphalia. This support offers a travel allowance for various project assignments lasting between 25 days and twelve weeks. Participants plan their stays abroad on their own initiative and cooperate on an equal footing with organisations in the countries of the Global South. In addition, the Concrete Peace Service also has co-operations that enable young professionals, such as craftsmen and women or trainees from the caring professions, to take part in a project abroad. Mutual exchange to strengthen civil society actors in the Global South is also an integral part of the Concrete Peace Service.
With the programme for the promotion of development policy information and education work (EpIB), the state supports the development policy education work of North Rhine-Westphalian One World groups and non-governmental organisations. The aim is to create an awareness of global interrelationships among the people of North Rhine-Westphalia, to deepen knowledge about the situation in countries of the Global South, to prevent xenophobia and to awaken a willingness among citizens to make their own contribution to fair global development.
The state government also supports development education work through the promoter programme, which provides civil society with a basic supply of expertise in this area. The programme is implemented by One World organisations throughout North Rhine-Westphalia. The programme is run by the One World Network NRW and Engagement Global, North Rhine-Westphalia branch office (Düsseldorf). Further information can be found at: www.einewelt-promotorinnen.de.
Municipal development cooperation is also supported in line with the development policy priorities of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Municipalities can make a very concrete and significant contribution to development partnerships - for example, when it comes to raising awareness of development policy and international interrelationships and the reciprocal impact of local action on the global world and vice versa. Municipal development partnerships build an important bridge between the people in North Rhine-Westphalia and those in the partner municipalities. One focus of state funding is on supporting municipal development cooperation with Ukraine in order to contribute to the reconstruction of the country. The state government would like to support the municipalities in aligning their tasks with the principles of the 2030 Agenda in order to fulfil their global responsibility.
With its foreign programme, the state government supports development policy projects of non-governmental organisations from North Rhine-Westphalia. The programme supports One World initiatives, associations, migrant organisations, church groups and others that work in cooperation with partner organisations in the Global South to sustainably improve local living conditions. The programme focuses on education, health, ecological sustainability, sustainable management and job creation.
With 26 United Nations (UN) organisations, the federal city of Bonn is now Germany's most important UN location and a unique centre of excellence for international cooperation and sustainable development. In addition, over 170 internationally active organisations, scientific and economic institutions as well as governmental and non-governmental organisations are dedicated to the pressing development policy and sustainability issues of our time. These include the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), Engagement Global (EG) and the German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS). In realising its development policy goals, the state government also works together with the North Rhine-Westphalia Foundation for Environment and Development (SUE), which is also based in Bonn. In close cooperation with the federal government and the city, the state government promotes Bonn's development by, among other things, establishing new UN secretariats and other international organisations as well as by organising events, various conference formats and projects that help to promote exchange on global sustainability issues.
North Rhine-Westphalia is the largest of four founding states of the Development and Peace Foundation (sef:), which was established in 1986 and is based in the federal city of Bonn. The sef: sees itself as a forum for interdisciplinary and international dialogue on global challenges. Through its work, it aims to contribute to raising awareness of global interrelationships. In its events and publications, it brings together scientific findings with experiences from political practice.
The "North Rhine-Westphalian Academy for International Politics" (https://www.aia-nrw.org/de) in Bonn, which was founded in 2021 on the initiative of the state government, is a further expression of the state's diverse commitment to supporting the expansion of Bonn as an international centre and at the same time actively striving for international exchange on key issues of the future.